Writing and advising for social good

Nonprofit news roundup, 08.28.15

Duke University received $478.3 million from donors in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015, up eight percent from the previous year and marking the third straight year it has received its highest level of philanthropic giving.

With the new gifts and pledges, Duke has now raised $2.7 billion in a comprehensive fundraising that will end in 2017 and aims to raise $3.25 billion.

The campaign so far has raised $307 million to support and endow student financial aid, and $394 million for capital projects and related initiatives.

The Duke Annual Fund received over $36.5 million in the most recent fiscal year — also a new record — from nearly 60,000 alumni, parents, students and friends.

Greensboro United Way gets $750,000 for poverty program

Phillips Foundation awarded a $750,000 grant to United Way of Greater Greensboro for its Family Success Centers to help low-income families break the generational cycle of poverty and overcome barriers to financial stability and independence.

The grant will more than double the number of families served through the Family Success Centers.

Roughly 20 percent of Greensboro residents live in poverty.

The Family Success Center pilot program, housed at Guilford Child Development, serves 41 families in the 27406 zip code, and plans to serve 100 families by June 2016.

The Foundation’s contribution will allow United Way to launch three more centers in other low-income zip codes over the next 36 months to 48 months.

The Family Success Center is a collaborative effort led by United Way and 17 partner organizations.

It assists families living at or below the federal poverty line, offering such resources as job training, educational development and financial literacy in a one-stop location.

Participating families meet with case managers who help them develop and use personalized plans for financial security and sustainable success.

Public School Forum studying educational opportunity

Educational opportunity will be the focus of a new study group the Public School Forum of North Carolina has formed and a new Center it aims it is launching.

Building on the work of the study group, the North Carolina Center for Educational Opportunity will serve as the vehicle the Forum and its partners will use to address issues of educational opportunity through new programs and policy initiatives.

Initially, the study group and Center will focus on the issues of racial equity, trauma and learning, and school funding.

The Forum is seeking funding for the Center.

Leading the study group and Center will be Joe Ableidinger, the Forum’s senior director of policy and programs, and James E. Ford, the Forum’s program director.

N.C. Central gets $200,000

North Carolina Central University received a $200,000 grant as winner of the Distinguished Professor Endowed Award from Delta Sigma Theta Society.

The grant will support efforts at N.C. Central in integrated biosciences that focus on uterine fibroid tumor research.

Heart Association plans events, receives $1,000

The American Heart Association will hold its annual Twin Counties Heart Walk on October 3 at North Carolina Wesleyan College in Rocky Mount, and its annual Down East Heart Walk on November 1 at Greenville Town Commons.

The Association also has received a $1,000 gift from Chris Godley of State Farm for the Greenville Heart Ball.

Teacher arts grants available

October 1 is the deadline for submitting applications to ArtsGreensboro for its 2015-16 Teacher Art Grant program.

Teachers, PTAs, and schools serving K-12 students in greater Greensboro may apply for grants ranging up to $1,500 for projects that involve direct student and teacher participation.

The goals of the grants are to emphasize arts projects and programs in all school subject areas; support the teaching of the North Carolina arts curriculum; bring artists into classrooms; reach large numbers of students; and encourage cooperative arts projects among schools, teachers, PTAs, and other organizations.

Community Matters hosting event, receives $4,750

Community Matters in Charlotte, an insurance-industry group that supports selected nonprofit partners, will hold its Second Annual Party with a Purpose on September 24 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Mac’s Southend.

Community Matters also received two donations totaling $4,750 from The Hartford.

Rural students to get free computer systems

North Carolina Modernist Houses in Durham and its educational initiative Project BauHow, will support 200 students in grades nine through 11 in rural North Carolina high schools this fall by providing free computer systems with Computer Aided Design software.

This is the third year Project BauHow has donated CAD systems to drafting classes in rural high schools.

Green Building Council to hold gala

North Carolina native Gill Holland, an advocate of historic preservation and sustainable communities, will be the keynote speaker at the 2015 Green Gala hosted by the North Carolina Chapter of the U. S. Green Building Council.

The event will be held on September 18 at the Ritz Carlton in Charlotte starting at 5:30 p.m.

Crumley Roberts sponsoring Heart Association

Law firm Crumley Roberts has become a two-year “Life is Why” sponsor of the American Heart Association in in Greater Guilford County.

Through its sponsorship, Crumley Roberts will focus on year-round opportunities in the region to educate the entire community on how to prevent heart disease.

RiverRun Film Festival gets $25,000

Wells Fargo will provide $25,000 to support the RiverRun International Film Festival and its year-round Films With Class educational outreach program, and will serve as a presenting sponsor of the Festival’s Films With Class programs.

Through the sponsorship, RiverRun will use new digital tools to reach more Forsyth County classrooms.

Charlotte Race for the Cure set for October 3

Charlotte Komen Race for the Cure will be held on October 3 Marshall Park.

The event, to be held for the 19th straight year, raised $1.5 million and attracted over 13,000 participants last year.

With those funds, Komen Charlotte awarded $1.1 million in grants to 17 community health programs.

Since 1997, Komen Charlotte has raised a total of $18 million to support community programs and research.

Up to 75 percent of net proceeds stays in the community to fund community health programs in a 13 counties.

The remaining 25 percent supports the Komen Research Program, which funds major research projects throughout the U.S., including breast cancer research at North Carolina universities.